American talented actress Elizabeth Banks was born on February 10, 1975 in the small city of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, USA. She was originally known as Elizabeth Mitchell. She left her home and attended college at the University of Pennsylvania where she graduated as a Magna cum Laude. After this, she took up training from the Advanced Training Program of the reputable American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco.

Banks is known for her roles in "Seabiscuit", "Heights", the "Spider-Man" films (playing the part of Betty Brant), and the cult comedy "Wet Hot American Summer". She quickly gained widespread exposure through movies like "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Slither." She also plays Mark Wahlberg's love interest in the Disney movie, "Invincible".

In May 2006, she appeared in the season five finale of the NBC sitcom "Scrubs" as Dr. Kim Briggs, the love interest of J.D. (Zach Braff). The character has appeared throughout season six as a recurring guest star. Banks will also be a recurring guest throughout season seven. In the same year she also appeared on the show "Stella", as she is a long time friend of the creators/stars of the show, the Stella comedy troupe.

Banks also has a string of mainstream films lined up. She plays the female lead in the dark comedy "Bill", alongside Aaron Eckhart and Jessica Alba. Banks also has a small role in the family comedy "Fred Claus", along with Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti, as well as a love interest in the comedy "Definitely, Maybe". She recently started filming the thriller "A Tale of Two Sisters".

Next up will be a starring role in Zack and Miri Make a Porno written and directed by Kevin Smith and co-starring Seth Rogen.

After graduating in 1998, Elizabeth Banks transferred to New York and began to work in theaters. She then took small parts in the movies and guest appearances in some television series. Her feature debut was the controversial Surrender Dorothy. However, Elizabeth Banks aspired to acquire more roles in films and this made her decide to move to LA where she started to accept supporting roles. Upon acquiring the opportunity to work in LA, she was required to change her name in order to avoid confusion as there is already an actress using that name. After sometime, she became one of the most promising actresses in Hollywood.

The first signal of her success came to her when she was cast in the movie Spider Man (2002). Elizabeth Banks' role as Betty Brant, the newspaper tycoon’s secretary, left a mark on the people who have seen the film. Due to her effective portrayal, she was able to reprise the role in the series.

Elizabeth Banks played several small roles in the movies Swept Away (2002) and Catch Me If You Can (2002), where she played the role of a bank clerk who assisted the younger Frank Abagnale with all the necessary information about the security of the bank. Her remarkable role in Seabiscuit (2003), charmed the audience very much and made her land in leading roles such as Michael Showalter's The Baxter (2005) and James Gunn's Slither (2006).

Elizabeth Bank’s skill in acting and her elegant and charming presence on the screen made her admired by many. In the year 2003, she has won the New Exciting Face award from Young Hollywood and she was nominated for her role in Seabiscuit under the category Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

Keira was born to Will Knightley (also an actor) and Sharman MacDonald (actor-turned-playwright) on the 22nd of March, 1985.She first asked her parents for an agent at the tender age of three, but they refused, not wanting their daughter to follow them

She first asked her parents for an agent at the tender age of three, but they refused, not wanting their daughter to follow them onto the stage. Keira kept at them, and they finally gave in when she was six. However, her parents still had a few tricks up their sleeves. As part of the deal, Keira, who is dyslexic, had to study through the school holidays, and she was only permitted to work on productions if they didn't interfere with her education.

In 1994, at the age of nine, she completed her first movie, starring as Natasha Jordan in Moira Armstrong's 'A Village Affair'. Following this, she played a number of small roles in other productions.

Her first high profile role came in 1999, when she played the part of Sabe, the decoy queen in Star Wars Episode I. Her part in the film was kept secret in the lead up to the much anticipated release, and Natalie Portman was promoted as having played the roles of both the real and decoy queens so as not to spoil the surprise. A lot of fans still think Portman played both roles.

Since then, she has completed an impressive array of films, including the made-for-TV movie 'Princess of Thieves', the series 'Oliver Twist', and the thriller 'The Hole'. She also played a small role in 'Deflation'.

Keira's 'breakthrough' role came with Gurinder Chadha's 'Bend It Like Beckham', which was an unexpected hit worldwide. In order to play the part, she endured 20 weeks of tough football practice - her coach, who had trained top players, declared her more naturally talented than Michael Owen.

With the success of Bend It Like Beckham came a flurry of roles. She stepped into Julie Christie's shoes for the controversial remake of the classic 'Dr. Zhivago', played Louise in 'Pure', and filmed 'Love, Actually' alongside Liam Neeson and Hugh Grant.

Soon after, Disney snapped her up to fill the corset of Elizabeth Swann in the summer box office hit 'Pirates of the Caribbean'. Keira's latest role sees her breathe life into King Arthur's Guinevere in the July 2004 release of the same name.

The good news for Keira's fans is that her roles just keep getting bigger and bigger, and her star brighter and brighter. Rest assured that we will be seeing a lot more of Keira in the future.